School Options To Get A Push

State Effort To Explain Alternatives

July 9, 2004|By Denise-Marie Balona Orlando Sentinel

Florida education officials are launching a campaign to sell more parents on the state's school-choice initiatives, including charter schools, private-school tuition vouchers and virtual schools that let kids finish a whole academic year using the Internet.

Town-hall meetings and public-service announcements on radio and in newspapers will be used to encourage higher participation in these programs, which attracted almost 100,000 students during the past school year.

Through the years, state officials have promoted choice programs as a way to relieve crowding in regular schools and because, in many cases, they cost less to run. The campaign reminds families that they no longer have to settle for a traditional public school if it does not work for their children.

"What I'd like to see is parents being more proactive in making a decision to stay in a public school or choose an alternative," said Theresa Klebacha, who heads the school-choice office at the Florida Department of Education. "The deal right now is to stay in the passing school, which is great if that's what the parent wants. But sometimes, the parent doesn't know there are other options."

Critics counter that the marketing effort could push parents to remove their children from good public schools in favor of unproven options.

They point out that students can leave a public school that has a passing or better grade on the state's annual report card to enroll in a charter school that struggles just to afford materials or a private school where teachers don't have college degrees.

The Florida Education Association, the state's teachers union, views the marketing plan as a "calculated effort to get people to fear public schools," said Mark Pudlow, the association's spokesman. "The message, and it's not so subtle, is public schools aren't good and these things are."

Officials say the town meetings will do more to reach out to parent groups than what has been accomplished by public-school officials, who often oppose choice programs. The marketing push will include efforts to reach black and Hispanic media, offering messages in Spanish.

The school-choice office also plans to expand a Web site, www.opportunityschools.org, to give parents more information about the 1,200 or so private schools that accept vouchers.

Dawn Steward, legislative leader for the Florida PTA, said many parents may not be aware of choice programs because they aren't involved with their children's schools. Steward said it will take more than meetings and public-service announcements to reach many families -- particularly poor ones or ones who don't speak English.

Denise-Marie Balona can be reached at dbalona@orlandosentinel.com or 386-851-7923.